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IKEA is again recalling furniture sold in its U.S. and Canadian stores over risks that they can easily tip over and cause child injuries or death.
Here are a few details about the recall:
- WHAT: The latest recall, issued by IKEA and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) on March 4, 2020, is for IKEA’s KULLEN 3-drawer chests sold at IKEA stores and online at IKEA-USA.com between April 2005 and December 2019.
- Why: The recall states the KULLEN chest is unstable when not anchored to the wall, posing risks of tip-overs and entrapment that may result in death or serious injuries to children. It further notes KULLEN 3-drawer chests imported after August 12, 2019 do not comply with the performance requirements of the revised U.S. consensus standard.
- How Many: Ikea’s KULLEN chest recall affects roughly 820,000 units, 150,000 of which were sold in Canada. IKEA previously recalled over 17 million child and adult dressers (including its MALM dresser) due to similar hazards in 2016 and 2017.
IKEA’s latest recall comes just two months after the Swedish furniture maker agreed to pay $46 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of a 2-year-old boy who was killed by a MALM dresser in 2017. His parents claim they never knew about the recall, and were never contacted by IKEA.
The boy’s death is one of at least 8 child deaths linked to recalled IKEA chests and dressers since 1989, and the settlement was nearly three times the amount the manufacturer paid to settle similar lawsuits in 2016, when a $50 million payout was split among three families.
Though IKEA’s recalls have made headlines in recent years, it’s not the only furniture manufacturer to pull dangerously designed chests, drawers, and dressers. Since September 2019, the CSPSC has issued seven separate recalls of various products, and issued a rare product safety alert for one in particular: the Hodedah four-drawer dresser. CPSC officials believed the Hodedah dresser was so dangerous it did not wait for the manufacturer to issue a voluntary recall, which is how most potentially hazardous consumer products are pulled from the shelves.
Consumers who own the recalled IKEA KULLEN 3-drawer dresser are advised to immediately stop using them if they are not properly anchored to the wall and located in an area where they can be accessed by children. Consumers can contact IKEA for a full refund (either in-store returns or free item pick-up), or a free wall-attachment-anchor kit and optional free in-home installation service.
Defective Products & Victims’ Rights
IKEA has now spent years battling the legal ramifications brought about by hazards associated with their dressers, and the large number of IKEA products owned by consumers. Unfortunately, they have failed to fully rectify the problem, placing children and their families at risk of preventable tragedies.
At Levinson Axelrod, P.A., our attorneys have extensive experience handling product liability cases involving dangerous and defective consumer products. If you have questions about your legal rights and options following preventable injuries, contact our firm to request a free case evaluation.